1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a Plasma Display Panel (PDP), and more particularly, to a discharge cell structure of a PDP.
2. Description of the Related Art
A PDP is a display device in which ultraviolet rays generated by the discharge of a gas excite phosphors to realize predetermined images. The PDP is classified according to the voltage application method and electrode structure. The triode surface discharge AC-PDP (Alternating Current-Plasma Display Panel) is becoming the most common type of PDP.
In a triode surface discharge AC-PDP, address electrodes, barrier ribs, and phosphor layers are arranged on a rear substrate, and sustain electrodes comprised of scan electrodes and common electrodes are arranged on a front substrate. The address electrodes and the scan electrodes are covered with a dielectric layer. A discharge gas (typically an Ne—Xe compound gas) is injected into discharge cells formed where the address electrodes intersect the sustain electrodes.
With the application of an address voltage Va between the address electrodes and scan electrodes, discharge cells where illumination is to take place are selected by an address discharge. If a sustain voltage Vs is applied between the scan electrodes and common electrodes of selected discharge cells, a plasma discharge (i.e., a sustain discharge) occurs in the discharge cells. Ultraviolet rays are emitted from excited Ne or Xe atoms generated during the sustain discharge, and the ultraviolet rays excite phosphor layers so that visible light is created to thereby realize the display of color images.
In the PDP operating as described above, the barrier ribs are arranged in a striped pattern or in a closed lattice configuration. With the barrier ribs arranged in a striped pattern, a single discharge cell is defined by the space between two adjacent barrier ribs, and by the intersection of an address electrode and a sustain electrode. In a closed lattice configuration, each of the discharge cells is defined independently by the barrier ribs.
The discharge cells with the above barrier rib structures are formed into rectangular shapes with lengths greater than widths. For each of the discharge cells, a scan electrode and a common electrode for effecting a sustain discharge are uniformly aligned at opposite ends of the particular discharge cell so that a discharge gap is formed between the scan electrode and common electrode in a center area of the discharge cell.
However, a problem with such a configuration is that compared to the overall volume of the discharge cells, the discharge gaps between the scan electrodes and common electrodes, and the main discharge regions opposite the discharge gaps where sustain discharge takes place, are limited in size. As a result, a smooth initialization of discharge is difficult such that it is necessary to increase a drive voltage. Also, it is difficult to realize sufficient wall charges and space charges in the discharge cells such that illumination efficiency is reduced, thereby placing limitations on the overall efficiency of the PDP (i.e., the brightness ratio relative to the amount of power consumed).